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News Archive

CRF Family Research Scholars - In The News

Nancy Folbre, Professor of Economics and past CRF Scholar (’07-’08) was cited the article “Why Do Some Feminists Get Uneasy When Women Make Progress?” in the Atlantic. The article discusses Liza Mundy’s book, The Richer Sex, whichidentifies some academic feminists, including Folbre, who tend to look only at

the half-empty part of the picture. While Mundy acknowleges there is still plenty of room for improvement and thinks "it's awesome that this Fempire has become an American institution," she also believes "the conversation needs to be enlarged and updated." (The Atlantic, 11/15/12).

Nancy Folbre comments on child-rearing’s impact on children as well as society and the economy in her Economix blog post “Of Parents, Puppies, and Robots.”She discusses the challenges parents have when defining the costs and benefits of childrearing. She says that the discussion of individual decision-making is missing any serious consideration of the impact of child-rearing on the economy as a whole. (New York Times,11/19/12)

Past CRF Scholar Linda Tropp (’09-‘10) was interviewed for NPR’s Talk of the Nation where she spoke with Eric Deggans and Neal Conan about Eric's new book on race and media. Tropp studies perceptions of racial differences and discussed communicating about race across group lines and what that means for what Deggans calls “a divided America.” (NPR, 11/1/12)

Nancy Folbre writes about ongoing disagreement over contraception and the assumptions that drive the public policy debates about it in her Economix blog post “Contraceptive Economics.”She discusses the economic implications of becoming pregnant and points out that “Republicans typically embrace cost-benefit analysis. But they seem reductive to accept its application to the impact of contraceptive access on public health.” (New York Times, 10/15/12)

Current CRF Scholar Kathleen Arcaro’s work was featured in the blog Motherhood for her research that uses breast milk to look for clues about breast cancer risk. Mothers can donate their breast milk which will help Arcaro learn how to create personalized breast cancer risk profiles and use DNA to reduce the risk of breast cancer. (Motherhood, 10/15/12)

Nancy Folbre’s Economix blog post “Campaigning for Care”discusses the US’s changing family dynamic and how it should effect the election.Folbre says neither of the candidates running for president this year has addressed the issue of the changing nature of how Americans care for others. Most working people take some responsibility for caring for children, grandchildren, parents or grandparents, but few policies exist to assist them and there is little debate over why. (New York Times, 10/8/12)

Nancy Folbre examines the economics of cooperative enterprises in her blog post “The Year of the Cooperative.” In recognition of October being National Cooperative Month and the United Nations proclaiming 2012 the International Year of Cooperatives, Folbre notes that these enterprises play an important role in our economic system, one that is likely to grow in decades to come. (New York Times, 10/1/12)